Sex Health Education Parent Notification Letter 2019-2020

November 06, 2019

Pulaski would like to inform you of the Chicago Public Schools program that will be implemented during this school year. This is a comprehensive curriculum to teach sexual health education from grades kindergarten through 12th grade in all CPS schools and will teach developmentally-appropriate, medically-accurate information.

The Office of Student Health and Wellness is working to remove health-related barriers to learning so that students may succeed in college and life. The instructional program in grades K-12 will provide a foundation for knowledge and skills related to human development, relationships, decision-making, abstinence, medically-recommended contraception and disease prevention. At each grade level, the instructional program teaches developmentally-appropriate, medically-accurate information that builds on the knowledge and skills that were taught in the previous grades.

Family Life Education – Kindergarten thru 4th Grade

In grades K-4, the foundational instruction includes anatomy and physiology, puberty and adolescent development, identity, reproduction, healthy relationships and personal safety, often referred to as Family Life Education. Some of the lesson titles include: Respecting Everyone, Public vs. Private, Smart About Strangers, Building Relationships, and My Body. This curriculum will be taught for 300 minutes per grade per school year.

Human and Personal Development – 5th thru 12th Grade

In grades 5-12, the knowledge gained from grades K-4 serves as a foundation to which information about puberty and adolescent development and sexually transmitted diseases and HIV including information on abstinence, medically-recommended contraceptives, transmission and prevention of STIs and HIV, informed decision-making and sexual orientation are added. Some of the lesson titles include: Health and Hygiene, Decision Making, Adolescent Development, Abstinence and Contraceptives, Delay Tactics and Refusal Skills and Self-Esteem and Body Image. This curriculum will be taught for 675 minutes per grade per school year.

It is our intention to educate our parents about this new program before classroom instruction begins. The sexual health education curriculum will be taught as part of P.E. and Health. Classroom instruction will be taught by our Physical Education teachers, Mr. Battin and Mr. Schram. Both teachers will be available to talk with you about the curriculum or answer your questions during Parent-Teacher Conferences on Nov. 13 from 11:00am-6:00pm. They will have information about the curriculum available and will help you understand the program. You may also email questions to them at laschram@cps.edu or mnbattin@cps.edu. Information will also be available on the Pulaski website atwww.pulaskischool.org. We encourage our parents to engage in this part of your child’s growth.

Please see the Pulaski school website if you want to opt-out from the entire curriculum or from specific lessons.

Thank you for working with Pulaski to ensure our students participate in a well-rounded education that prepares them to be healthy, productive members of our society.